BBC Arabic Television

Infobox Network
network_name = BBC Arabic
network_
country = United Kingdom (intended for External Consumption only)
network_type = Satellite television network
available = Worldwide
owner = British Broadcasting Corporation
key_people =
launch_date = 2008
website = [http://www.bbcarabic.com/ www.bbcarabic.com] (Arabic)
share = Available in 10.7 million homes
share as of = March 2007
share source =
network =
owner = BBC
slogan =
country = United Kingdom "(for external consumption only)"
broadcast area = Middle East
headquarters = London
former names =
replaced names =
sister names =
timeshift names =
network_type = Satellite & Cable
television network
past_names =
terr serv 1 =
terr chan 1 =
sat serv 1 = Hot Bird 6
sat chan 1 = 12597 V / 27500 / 3/4
sat serv 2 = Hot Bird 7A
sat chan 2 = 11334 H / 27500 / 2/3 & 11432 V / 27500 / 2/3
sat serv 3 = Astra 1L
sat chan 3 = 11597 V / 22000 / 5/6
sat serv 4 = Thor 2
sat chan 4 = 11325 H / 24500 / 7/8
sat serv 5 = SKY Italia
sat chan 5 = Channel 520
sat serv 6 = Cyfra+
sat chan 6 = Channel 104
sat serv 7 = Cyfrowy Polsat
sat chan 7 = Channel 85
sat serv 8 = Boom TV
sat chan 8 = Channel ?
sat serv 9 = Digital+
sat chan 9 = Channel 75
sat serv 10 = Bell ExpressVu
sat chan 10 = Channel 510
sat serv 11 = Star Choice
sat chan 11 = Channel 501
sat serv 12 = Astro Malaysia
sat chan 12 = Channel 93
sat serv 13 = Tata Sky
sat chan 13 = Channel 536
sat serv 14 = Dialog TV
sat chan 14 = Channel 2
sat serv 15 = TrueVisions
sat chan 15 = Channel 72
sat serv 16 = Astro Nusantara
sat chan 16 = Channel 32
sat serv 17 = SKY Network Television
sat chan 17 = Channel 93
sat serv 18 = SelecTV
sat chan 18 = Channel 5
sat serv 19 = TVB Pay Vision
sat chan 19 = Channel 62|]
sat serv 20 = SkyLife
sat chan 20 = Channel 528
sat serv 21 = CanalSat
sat chan 21 = Channel 48
sat serv 22 = Digiturk
sat chan 22 = Channel 122
sat serv 23 = Dream
sat chan 23 = Channel 21
sat serv 24 = Foxtel
sat chan 24 = Channel 606
sat serv 25 = SKY Latin America
sat chan 25 = Channel 631
sat serv 26 = DStv
sat chan 26 = Channel 50
sat serv 27 = TV Vlaanderen Digitaal
sat chan 27 = Channel 51
sat serv 28 = NTV Plus
sat chan 28 = Channel 10
cable serv 1 = UPC Ireland
cable chan 1 = Channel 206
cable serv 2 = StarHub digital
cable chan 2 = Channel 13
cable serv 3 = Rogers Cable
cable chan 3 = Channel 194 Digital (Analogue varies by region)
cable serv 4 = Shaw TV
cable chan 4 = Channels Vary
cable serv 5 = Cablevision
cable chan 5 = Channel 104
cable serv 6 = now TV
cable chan 6 = Channel 320
cable serv 7 = Cable TV
cable chan 7 = Channel 75
cable serv 8 = Foxtel Digital
cable chan 8 = Channel 103
cable serv 9 = SkyCable
cable chan 9 = Channel 29
cable serv 10 = Global Destiny
cable chan 10 = Channel 43
cable serv 11 = OneLink Communications (San Juan, Puerto Rico)
cable chan 11 = Channel 74
cable serv 12 = TelstraClear InHomeTV
cable chan 12 = Channel 93
cable serv 13 = Verizon FiOS
cable chan 13 = Channel 92
cable serv 14 = CATV (50%)
cable chan 14 = various numbers
cable serv 15 = Foxtel Digital
cable chan 15 = Channel 606
cable serv 16 = Kabel Deutschland
cable chan 16 = Channel 838
cable serv 17 = RCS&RDS
cable chan 17 = Channel 53
cable serv 18 = UPC
cable chan 18 = Channel 79
cable serv 19 = FASTWEB (Italy)
cable chan 19 = Channel 520
adsl serv 1 = FASTWEB (Italy)
adsl chan 1 = Channel 520
adsl serv 2 = Alice Home TV (Italy)
adsl chan 2 = Channel 520

BBC Arabic Television is a news and information television channel broadcast to the Middle East by the BBC. It was launched at 0956GMT on 11 March 2008. The service was announced in October 2005 and was to start broadcasting in Autumn 2007, but was delayed. Presenters include Hassan Muawad, Tony Khouri, Lena Do, Rania Al-Attar and Dalia Mohammed.

BBC Arabic Television is run by the BBC World Service; as such, it is funded from a grant-in-aid from the British Foreign Office and not the television licence that is used to fund the BBC's domestic broadcasting. The service is based in the Egton Wing of Broadcasting House in London, but some technical aspects are managed at the BBC World Service's Bush House. Initially the service is broadcasting for 12 hours per day; 24-hour programming will begin later in the year.

BBC Arabic can also be seen via [http://www.bbcarabic.com www.bbcarabic.com] . The website includes a 16:9 live stream of the channel.

BBC Newshour, an hour-long news bulletin is broadcast twice a day. In this programme, the top stories of the day are analysed and covered by BBC correspondents around the world. Other bulletins are half-an-hour long. The top stories are broadcast on the channel every 15 minutes.

This is not the first time that the BBC has attempted to set up an Arabic television service. The previous attempt closed on 21 April 1996, after 2 years on air, when the BBC's partners, Orbit Communications Corporation (owned by King Fahd's cousin, Prince Khaled) pulled the plug after the BBC broadcast an episode of "Panorama" that was critical of the Saudi Arabian government. Many of the staff who worked for the original BBC Arabic Television service went on to work for Al Jazeera television [ [http://www.richardsonmedia.co.uk/al%20jazeera%20origins.html THE FAILED DREAM THAT LED TO AL-JAZEERA] ] . Al Jazeera is one of BBC Arabic Television's main competitors.

Competitors

*Al Alam
*Al Arabiya
*Al Jazeera

References

External links

* [http://www.bbcarabic.com BBC Arabic.com] ar icon
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/arabic/av/programmes/2008/02/?redirect=080222_live_tv.shtml&news=1&host=www&nbram=1&bbram=1&nbwm=1&bbwm=1&lang=ar Live video stream]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2006/08_august/14/arabic.shtml BBC Press Release]
* [http://www.tbsjournal.com/Amin.html]
* [http://www.richardsonmedia.co.uk/al%20jazeera%20origins.html The Failed Dream That Lead To Al Jazeera]
* Faisal Abbas: " [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7292912.stm BBC Arabic TV 'should try to be different] , " BBC News Online on March 12, 2008
* Adam Sherwin: " [http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article3492555.ece BBC Arabic TV service tunes in to crowded news market] ," The Times (UK) on March 6, 2008
* Eric Pfanner: " [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/world/middleeast/04bbc.html BBC Set to Open Its New Arab World TV Channel] in New York Times on March 4, 2008
* David Chambers: " [http://www.metimes.com/Opinion/2008/03/10/op-ed_david_chambers_-_bbc_arabic_tv/5221/ BBC Arabic TV will Rock the Arab World] ," Middle East Times on March 10, 2008 (also [http://www.yobserver.com/culture-and-society/10013919.html Yemen Observer] , [http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/bbc-arabic-tv-will-rock-the-arab-world-us-specialist Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW)] , [http://www.arabnews.it/2008/03/19/bbc-arabic-tv-scuotera-il-mondo-arabo/ Arab News/Italy] )
* Chris Forrester: " [http://rapidtvnews.com/index.php/switch-off-al-hurra-call.html ‘Switch off Al Hurra’ call] ," Rapid TV News on March 10, 2008
* " [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7288062.stm BBC launches Arabic TV channel] ," BBC on March 11, 2008
*Oleg Gordievsky: " [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?menuId=1588&menuItemId=-1&view=DISPLAYCONTENT&grid=A1&targetRule=0 World Service kowtows] , March 22, 2008 (with Vladimir Bukovsky, Martin Dewhirst, Sergei Cristo, and Leonid Finkelstein)